Should the SF Underground Market be bigger?

Note: After this post, my blog will move. Come check it out at foragesf.com/blog. Thanks for reading!

The first and most obvious answer to this question is yes. If one throws an event that draws more people than your space can fit, you move up. Bigger is of course better, and in all things, we want to be as big as we can get. Right? I’m not so sure.

It’s a question I get a lot. People tell me that we need a bigger space, and the running joke seems to be that we should move it to the Cow Palace. Its definitely something we think about not the Cow Palace – when I see the hour and half wait to get in, get angry emails from customers (actually just got my first one a couple days ago), and patiently explain to vendors for the 20th time that in fact we can’t let anyone else in at the moment, lest we all die fiery deaths as martyrs for the local food movement (translation: we’ve reached fire code capacity).

We’ve done our best to make the market accessible to as many people as possible. We started this past December in a small Victorian in the Mission (seven vendors and 150 customers), and moved to a warehouse on Capp St. (30 vendors and 700 customers)— both still not big enough. When we approached SomArts I thought that was it. There was no way we could overfill that space. This of course hasn’t proven true.

The space we have now, SomArts, is in the range of 5000 feet. That’s 35ft wide, and 144 feet long. It’s a large space by any measure.

We pay several thousand dollars to rent SomArts for a night and by SF standards, that’s very cheap. The next space up in size is about $10,000. That’s before shelling out for a cleaning staff, security, insurance, alcohol license, the band, equipment, and all the other less obvious costs that go into creating an event for 2,000 people. I don’t say this to complain, but to set the stage for a fact: If we got a bigger space, we would be forced to raise the vendor fees. As it is, the vendor fees don’t cover the cost of the space, which is why you paid $2 to get in this month. In May, we lost money on the market because the event was free. We don’t need to make a killing, but a market that loses money every month will not be around very long.

“But wait,” you say, “a bigger space would mean more people, more people equals more money, so no need to charge the vendors more.” Not necessarily. A larger space would definitely let more people enter at the same time, but the number of people coming in would not be guaranteed to go up by the amount we would need to make it worth the costs.

The current vendor fee is $50, a very low bar for entry into a commercial sales space like ours, but for some of our vendors it’s a stretch to pay that cost. Our vendors are making products that they are passionate about, but are also very expensive to produce. The profit margins are already slim, and it wouldn’t feel right to charge the $100-$300 per stall that a larger space would require.

I like the size it is. The market feels more like a big party, rather than a vast trade show. I like that we can fit upwards of 40 vendors inside and still have room for a couple hundred people, while at the same time being able to see the whole space in one sweep.

I like SomArts. We have a good deal of freedom at SomArts and the people who work there. They are very supportive of our ideas, and seem to genuinely want to make things work for us. No one working on the market has much professional event organizing experience; there are a million random things to think about when planning a market, so getting some help along the way is key. A larger commercial space probably would not offer that kind of support.

I like the idea that in creating a market for the SF food community to come to together, we are at the same time supporting a venerable SF non-profit event and art space. A space that hosts the kind of events that make SF what it is. They go out of their way to court and support burgeoning orgs (like ours) that would otherwise not be able to afford such a professional space, and for that they deserve our support. Every person that walks through their door helps them to get funding from grants as well as the city, so 2,000 people coming through each month at our market gives them some real leverage.

People do have to wait. I don’t feel good about it (although most people I talk to seem pretty happy with the whole experience, meeting fellow food obsessives in line is always fun). It’s great that people come out to show so much support, and ideally we wouldn’t make them wait so long to show that support. Note: If you want to miss the lines, come during the day next month, there will be tons of room.

Next months SF Underground Market will again be at SomArts on July 24th(this time on a weekend!). Although there is often a wait at night (hint: for a more relaxed time, come during the day). I want to say that I really do appreciate that people wait as long as they do. That kind of support shows the vendors that there is a market for what they make, and encourages them to keep getting better at what they do. I do believe that bigger is not always better, and there is a really intimate vibe now that I feel like we may lose if we expand. This doesn’t mean it will always be there, but for the time being we’re staying put. Let me know what you think. You think we should move? Did you see anything at the last market that needs changing? Thanks for reading, and thanks for coming, see you all next month!

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6 Responses to “Should the SF Underground Market be bigger?”

what about having a few slightly smaller ones in different neighborhoods at different times? smaller events could be organized by less experienced people in their neighborhoods with some initial assistance from the experienced underground farmers marketeers with a little oversight.

I have to agree with everything you’ve said in your post Iso. The market doesn’t really need a bigger space for additional costs. Hopefully by splitting it into two events that will help with waits. SomArts is a great space and I’ve attended so many events there over the years and I like that the Underground Market is supporting their efforts by being there.

HI Iso,
I’m one of the fortunate vendors having an opportunity to show, refine and sell our goods at the underground farmers market you have created with your friends.
I LOVE it and agree that the space is perfect, people have fun waiting in line, meeting and sharing and the price is right for everyone. I hope it is for you too, since you need to pay the bills and make a living too..
THANK you for doing this for all of us!
Best
Julia of 23Monkeytree.wordpress.com

Yes, it probably should. You know I’ve been trying to help you achieve your goal and my goal since the markets began. I have yet to become a vendor. I would love to do this with ample notice and at night (not days). It must be overwhelming for you, so I understand. If making it bigger or splitting it into two a month or even having one supervised by someone in the SF Bay Area and one in the SF area, that would be awesome.
Anything you can humanly do with whatever resources you have will be appreciated by everyone – I believe.
Then, one day, when you’re famous :) you will look back and see all the good you’ve done in the world.

forageSF

This is the blog of Iso Rabins. Forager and founder of forageSF, a wild foods CSF/community in San Francisco, aspiring chef, aspiring writer. For more info about forageSF, and to see what we're trying to do, check out forageSF.com

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